A group of about 20 workers protested in front of the Distell premises in Adam Tas Road, Stellenbosch on Friday morning (21 October) claiming they were unfairly terminated earlier this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The former contract workers, who worked for the company for 10 to 23 years, claimed they have not been given a fair chance at employment to start with, saying other workers who started there more recently were pemployed permanently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Dennis Matsane, a spokesperson for Distell, said the individuals concerned are not Distell employees, but employed by a Distell contractor, Workforce, which provides services at several Distell sites, including its Adam Tas Road site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is, therefore, a matter between the individuals and their former employer,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Petronella Jonker, who worked at the site for 14 years, said she and fellow terminated workers are unhappy with the manner in which their contracts abruptly. \u201cWe were given letters in June saying our contracts were ending in July,\u201d she said. \u201cWe had been working here for very long while people working here in more recent times were getting permanent employee contracts, an option never extended to us. This is not fair.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The workers feel they had dedicated most of their adult lives to working for Distell, but were not recognised for this. They also claim they received no pension benefits despite its being deducted from their wages throughout their time of employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow is this possible?\u201d Freedom Mzandolo, who worked at the site for 20 years, wanted to know. \u201cWhy did we not get our pension?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The company Workforce said it couldn\u2019t comment on the matter as a legal process had commenced. \u201cWe are currently not in a position to respond to your questions at this time as the matter is currently sub judice<\/i> at the CCMA and has not been finalised,\u201d Lucinda Alfonica, its commercial manager, explained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs a respected, responsible and compliant employer we remain committed to fair labour practices.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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